Union County Chapter
of the Ohio Genealogical Society

Buck Run - This village was never much more than a post office site.  It is uncertain whether the post office was located in Allen Township or Union Township.

Darby Ford - Darby Ford was the name of a community that arose at the site of present day Milford Center in the early 1800s.  Settlers to the area constructed a ford across Darby Creek near the current site of the SR 4 bridge.  After George Reed constructed a mill near this site, the area became known as Mill Ford.

Flint - This is the name that the Milford Center post office was known by in the 1860s.  

Green Settlement - This was one of the Post Road Settlements.  It was located between Irwin and Chuckery.  One of the early schools in Union Township was held here as early as 1814 by Nehimiah Sabine.  This school is noted as the first free school in the township.

Homer - Homer was surveyed in October 1834 by Levi Phelps, County Surveyor, for Elisha Reynolds.  It was recorded in the county office in November of 1834.  In its peak, this town contained a a saw mill, a cheese factory, a general store, a blacksmith shop, a cabinet shop, a woolen carding mill, a furniture factory, and a wagon/carriage shop.  The demise of Homer came about in 1855 when the railroad bypassed the village by three miles.  Today all that remains is a few houses and a road named Homer.  This town was located at the present-day intersection of SR 4/SR 36, and Homer Road.  

Howe - 

Irwin - Irwin was founded in 1808 by John Irwin.  This town was originally called Irwin Station, and it was a stop on the Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, and Indianapolis Railroad.  It was properly surveyed as a town, but it was never recorded as such in the county office.  The first house was erected on the village site by James Miller.  A post office was established in the early days of the village with David Clement serving as the first post master.  A US post office is still maintained in the village today, with a zipcode of 43029.  In its heyday Irwin supported a sawmill, a Methodist Church, a grain warehouse, a shoe shop, a tile factory, a blacksmith, and a physician.   There is still a United Methodist Church in the village, known today as the Caldwell Memorial United Methodist Church.
In 1880 a brick school was erected in the village of Irwin.  This school district would eventually consolidate with the Milford Center School District to form the Union Rural School District.  This school was chartered in 1928 and again in 1930.

Irwin Station - This is an early reference Irwin.

McCloud Settlement - This was another of the Post Road Settlements.  It was located east of the Green Settlement.

Milford - This is the precursor to Milford Centre.  The word Centre was added to the town's name when the village was lobbying to become the county seat for Union County.

Milford Center - The town of Milford Center has the distinction of being one of the oldest communities in what is now Union County.  It is also the oldest town site in the county.  The area was called Darby Ford for a while after early settlers cleared trees in the area to create a ford across the creek.  This area is where the current State Route 4 bridge crosses the Big Darby Creek in Milford Center today.  The area was later called Mill Ford, after George Reed erected the first mill in the area.  The town of Milford was platted and recorded in 1816 for George Reed.  The original survey of the site called for 40 lots in the village.  In 1820, Milford Center became the first county seat of Union County when a small log court house was built here.  However the county seat was moved by 1822.  The US post office in the village was established in 1823, as Milford Center, with David Burnham serving as the first postmaster.  In 1831 the Methodist Episcopal Church at Milford was established.  Their first house of worship was erected in the village in 1835.  The Presbyterian Church at Milford was established in 1808 as the Upper Liberty Presbyterian Church.  This church was located on present day Orchard Road near the site of the Woods-Reed Cemetery.  This congregation erected a brick church structure in Milford in 1834.  The village was incorporated as Milford Center on March 3, 1853.  Over the next several years the town ceased to operate as an incorporated town, and the village was reincorporated on August 4, 1866.    By 1882 Milford Center had approximately 500 residents.  At one time the village supported a school, three general stores, four groceries, two drug stores, one hardware store, one grist mill, one saw mill, one carriage factory, two blacksmiths, two livery stables, one grain warehouse, two shoe shops, two hotels, two barber shops, and four churches.  This town also once boasted its own newspaper, The Ohioan.  Today Milford Center is still home to a school district.  The Fairbanks Local School District calls Milford Center and the surrounding area its home.  The town also still maintains a US Post office with a zipcode of 43045.  There are numerous churches in the area.  And there are several businesses located in the village, including a convenience store/gas station and a pizza shop.

A small one room schoolhouse was erected in the village prior to 1835.  A large school house was erected in the village between 1880-1881.  This school contained four rooms and cost approximately $10,000 to build.  Prior to this, neighborhood one room schools served the area.  This school district later consolidated with the Irwin School District to form the Union Rural School District.  In later years, this school would consolidate with the Chuckery-Darby School District and the Watkins School District to form the Fairbanks Local School District.

Milford Centre - This is a reference to Milford Center.

Mill Ford - This is another early reference to present day Milford Center.

Reed Settlement - This is believed to be an reference to the Upper Liberty area.  It was the site of the first school in Union Township, erected and held sometime between 1806 and 1808.

Rice City - Rice City or Ricetown, as it was sometimes called, was not a permanent settlement.  Rather, it was a location where the pioneers typically would meet and temporary shelters and buildings.  This area was located near the Hathaway Cemetery on the banks of  Treacle Creek on present day Connor Road.  One early mention of this village dates it to approximately 1816.

Ricetown - This was another name for Rice City.

Upper Liberty - This was the site of a pioneer settlement.  There was once a church located here, the Upper Liberty Presbyterian Church.  Today all that remains is the Woods-Reed Cemetery.  This settlement was located on present day Orchard Road.